Use of frozen carbon dioxide (CO2), commonly called dry ice, to maintain low temperatures during the transport of perishable items, is a common practice in many industries. However, during transit and periods of loading and or unloading, the dry ice may sublimate to CO2 gas. In many environments, such as sealed or poorly ventilated areas of an airplane, truck, or shipping container, increased CO2 concentrations may have detrimental consequences. Present technology is not portable; it is large, heavy, cumbersome, and arduous to set up and requires a large footprint or committed space for use. The present technology cannot be brought to the problem or area where carbon dioxide (CO2) gas levels are increasing, but this invention can be brought to the problem where carbon dioxide (CO2) gas levels are increasing and scrub out the dangerous CO2 gas levels to reasonable permissible levels. The present technology requires large canisters or cartridges that are heavy and difficult to change.
This invention will keep aircrews safe from toxic levels of carbon dioxide gas produced from the sublimation of dry ice required for perishable shipments during engine starts and de-icing events. This is especially dangerous in confined/small/limited/enclosed spaces such as the cockpit and supernumerary of a plane where the flight crew resides. Once the exposure to CO2 in the cockpit and or supernumerary exceeds 0.5% CO2 by volume (v/v), the aircrew, per policy and safety procedure, has to don oxygen masks, and bring the plane back to the gate where the aircrew leaves the plane, the plane is ventilated, and shipments are delayed. In addition, this invention will increase the air transport dry ice capacity and reduce the number of delayed shipments due to increased carbon dioxide gas levels in aircrew occupied areas, i.e., cockpit and supernumerary.